New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-05-28
PRICE THREE CENTS.
ONE LIFE LOST AT THE FIRE.
A SICK WOMAN DIED ON TIE SIDEWALK
FROM PROSTRATION
WHOLESALE DESTRUCTION OF HoRsEs-sCEyEs OF
DISTRESS IN THE sTREETs-LossEs BY
THE COMPANY AND oTuERs-THE

Belt Line Street Railroad Company and many
other buildings in Tentb-ave., Fifty-third-st
and Ffty-fourth-st yesterday morning was under,
control before day break, but the ruins continued
to blaze all day and until late honr last night.
As usual in fires which destroy everything at the
starting point, the origin Of yesterday mornings
conflagration was not ascertaned with certainty
There was rumor that fire broke out in the
blacksmiths shop at the west end of the stables
before midnight on Thursday night, and that the
employees who put it out did not tell the police. If
this is so, the fire may have smouldered after the
unskied fremen thought it was ont. It was not
until after a. yesterday that the men ON duty
IN the car stables found the building ablaze and
sent out the alarm to sum non the Fire Department,
Depot Master Byrne and three other men were on
the first floor of the stables at that time and about
twenty-five men were in other parts of the build
ing. All said that the fire appeared to come from
the repair shops at the west end. The buildings,
embracing the company's Office, stables. horse
stables and shops were three stories high and
soidy built of BRICK They occupied about four
ffths of the block west of Tenth.ave., between
Fifty third and Fifty-fourth sts
In few minutes after the alarm was given the
flames had spread through the buildings and were
rising above the roofs. They had plenty of COM
bustible material to feed on. On the ground floor
were 145 cars, closely packed together. On upper
floors were 1000 bales of hay. 5000 bales of
straw. and 10000 bushels Of grain. There were
more than ! 200 horses in the building and the
few employees there could hope to rescue only
few of them. Several of the stablemen ran along
the line of stalls, cutting balters and driving out
the frightened horses, but less than forty of the
animals taken out of the building The men
had to leave the Others to be burned to death. For
twenty minutes after the building well on fire
the cries and punging of the frantic horses could
be heard plainly above the roar of the flames
The attention of the police and fremeu was soon
called from the burning horses to the inmates
of tenement houses on the north side of Fifty
fouIth-st Those houses had taken fire and the
occupants had been awakened to their danger
barely in time to escape Half-clothed men and
women, who led or carried children were rushing
ont Of the houses and crying for help. The hot
flames made the street almost impossible. Ii was
not long before the tenement houses wore burning
as iercely as the stables opposite and the fire
threatened TO 60 through the block to Fifty-ffth-
st. Ii was then that the Three Skies" call was
ruDg, summOning most Of the engines between
Twenty-thrG-st and Fifty-nmth-st. Captain
Kilea of the Forty y-seventh-st. Police, also sent
for reserves from other precincts
So.desperate was the fight OF families from the
Fifty tourth-st. tenement houses that few persons
were able to save much clotking and of dis
tress were witnessed while the fire was raging.
Among the panicstricken people were Charles
Schneider and his family from the house No. 501
West Fifty-fourth-st. They had lost all
the property they had in the world and
schneider who was car-driver, had also lost eur
ployment by the fire. woman IN thc crowd had left
$l00 under her pillow, but had saved her baby.
Michael ClaDcey had lost 81 So IN cash along with
his furniture Few of the families thus made
homeless had any insurance 1t was believed at
the time that some lives had been lost but no per-
son reported missing later.
Families were driven from the tenement-h house.
in Fifty -hfh-st when those houses were 6elleysd
had died on Thursday ana a wake was In progress
there when the panic began. The corpse of the boy
was carried ont of the house by Mrs Farrell eldest
SON. 1t was removed to the police station and kept
there until the fire under control. On The south
side of EiftyiOuth-St west Of TIE car stables was
a frame shanty occupied by Mrs Elizabeth Walsh,
n widow seyenty-slx years of age, who had been
sick for several months Tne shauty took fire and
was burned tothe ground. Mrs. Walsh was carried
out to the street by her son, but she WAS so much
prostrated by fright that she died the side walk.
Her body carried to the police station III one of
the amDulances which had been sent TO the ire in
anticipation of injuries To some OF the people.
While scenes OF terror were being witnessed north
of the burning stables, the flames crossed Fifty
shantles on the rocky block owned by the Stryker
estate.l The collection OF name roOkerles was
known us the American Flats OF the fifty or
more bowels on the rocks a few were occupied as
stables, and the rest were tie homes OF poor fam
lies The flames swept rapidly among tha
shantIeS. and deyoared them with their contents,
few horses goats, pigs ana dogs being consumed
with the furniture ana clothing. All OF the people
living IN the novels escaped by way of tittyse
ond-st., but few of them saving anything more than
a few articles of clothing Abont live families IN
the lot had insurance on their goods Such a clean
sweep was made by the fire the rocks that later
in the day. when the people returned to poke about
IN the aShos, they found only n few broken stoves
and IRON cooking utensils. One brick building ON
the southwest corner of Tenth-ave. and Fifty
third-st. and few sha0tles in the street near
Eleventh-ave were saved by the firemen.
Eight frame houses on the eas' side of Tenth
ave-. opposite the stables. caught lire and were
burned to the ground. The occupants OF those
houses had few minutes warning of fhelr danger
and were able TO save some clothing and furniture
before the buildings were IN flames. wlngoi
Joseph News silk mil in Fifty y-htti-st extended
through the block to Fifty fourth-st, west OF tho
burning tenement houses. and It caugnt nre IN
short order. The tremen made determined stand
at that point and saved tine main factory building,
but the wing was destroyed. Tenement houses in
Fifty fifth-st. protected also, Chle Shay hay
ing concentrated his forces there TO prevent tho
fire from extending any further TO the north
From the burning car stables. the tenement houses
in Fltty-fourth,st. and the frame structures ~
Tenth ave. and Fifty thirl-st. there went up such
mass of flames that the entire city was iliuini-
mated. Long after the hremen Thought all danger
TO the adjoining blocks was over the fire looked as
if IL were likely TO spread. In the early morning
hours there was geat excitement he West Side
of the city. thousands of families feeling that their
homes were IN danger. The streets We're full OF
people at day break and great crowds pressed on
fagration. Both the police and the iiremen were
exhausted by the time the fire was under control.
After the roof and the walls of the car stables
fell in, many roasting corpses of horses could be-
seen In the ruiDs. Chief shay thought il would be
better for the health OF the neighb0rhood il all tho
bodies were cremated and he ordered the fremen
to cease throwing water on the ruins there. All
the tenement houses the north side Of Fifty
fourth-st, opposite the sta bles had been destroyed
including the building No. SO renth-ave. The
house No. $50 West Flfty-fourth-s west OF tho
silk mill, was partly destroyed. lt was the last
burned tenement houses held from eighteen to
twenty families,
It was not kIown where all the people, so sud,
denly made homeless went 10. Most OF them had
lost ali their property and few had any insurance.
Some of them had fingered about the ruins OF tner
former homes until last evening. telling pitiiu
stories of Vheir losses and narrow escapes
from DEATH Jacob New owned the two hve-story
houses Nos 525 and 527. next TO the wing OF hia
silk mill Vacant lots separated those houses from